The mother of the five-year-old girl, Mrs. Williams Koroye, kidnapped by an acquaintance simply identified as Ahmed, lamented on Thursday that her baby is still being held in captivity after a ransom payment of N1 million has been made.

The girl, Peace, was abducted in the residence at Akemfa 1 area of Yenagoa on july 10 by on Ahmed, a family friend to the Koroyes.

Mrs. Koroye said that although the demand for N1million ransom seemed impossible due to the financial standing of the family, kind-hearted members of the public contributed and raised the money but her child remained in captivity.

According to her, three days after collecting the ransom, Peace is yet to return.

She described Ahmed as a new Christian convert and member of her church, adding that he had borrowed her phone earlier on that fateful day and bolted away with it along with her daughter only to use the same phone to call family members to request for the ransom before the child could be freed. She appealed to security operatives to intensify efforts to rescue the girl.

Koroye said that her daughter was abducted while in the company of her siblings.

She said that she went for a church programme on the day the incident occurred only to come back to discover that the little girl was missing.

She alleged that the Ahmed left the church programme after borrowing her phone for and allegedly tricked her children to gain access into house and told the children that he was sent by their father to buy fuel, and took the girl along with him ostensibly to accompany him.

“Ahmed, who hails from Sokoto, is our family friend, residing in our neighbourhood here at Akemfa 1. We trusted him and never thought he could do this to us; he is well known and familiar with the children.

“We have been downcast, we were so surprised when he used my phone line to contact us to ask for the N1million because he knows how things are with us, we do not have the money. But sympathizers rallied round and brought the money and gave him and today are the third day now and no word from him with regards to returning Peace to us.

“He is a member of our Church, The Church of God Mission, and new convert who embraced Christ and the children know him.

“The past one week has been very traumatic to us, we are praying for the return of Peace,” Koroye said.

The Police Public Relations Officer in Bayelsa, Mr. Asinim Butswat, had confirmed the incident, adding that the command had commenced investigation and a manhunt for the suspect.

He however said that no arrest had so far been made.

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